By Scott Peterson, CS Monitor, October 7, 2015
GAZIANTEP, TURKEY–Russia stepped up its military strikes against anti-regime rebels in Syria Wednesday, launching 26 cruise missiles from ships in the Caspian Sea some 900 miles away as part of its bid to reshape the battlefield to favor President Bashar al-Assad.
The week-long series of Russian air and sea strikes has been criticized by the US and Western governments for targeting moderate rebels in western Syria–many of them clandestinely backed by the United States–while leaving Islamic State (IS) and other jihadist groups relatively untouched.
That pattern was made clear in Kafr Nabl, a town in northern Idlib province where a headquarters of a faction of the US-backed Free Syrian Army (FSA) was struck last week. On Wednesday, five bombs were dropped around an emergency hospital that treats wounded fighters but is very far from any IS position.
Russia’s direct military intervention comes more than four years into this civil war, which has claimed some 250,000 lives and displaced millions of Syrians. At least in part, it reinforces the efforts of regional power Iran, which for years has supported the Assad regime financially and militarily along with the Lebanese militia Hezbollah whose fighters have been instrumental in the battle against anti-regime rebels.
“Definitely this will change the direction of the battle, and the direction of the [anti-Assad] groups who can’t defend themselves from this,” says Mr. Payoush. “The Americans decide to strike the jihadists, so Russia strikes the moderates. The only remaining force will be Assad.”
Russia has also hit IS–stating that the cruise missiles were programmed for IS targets–and claims in recent days to have destroyed ammunition depots and four IS command centers. But Moscow says its battle against “terrorists” extends beyond the jihadists and includes all rebel groups, many supported with weapons and cash by the US, Turkey, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Jordan to topple Mr. Assad.
The bulk of Russian strikes so far have clustered in areas where Assad recently has lost ground, threatening a critical spine of territory in western Syria stretching from the capital, Damascus, to the coastal city of Latakia–the base of Russian air operations in Syria.
The Russian air and missile bombardments come amid reports of Syrian government forces launching a fresh ground offensive, in concert with hundreds of Iranian military advisers and thousands of Shiite Hezbollah fighters.
Russian cargo aircraft fly non-stop to Syria, and Russian drones are now constantly above Aleppo and rebel bastions in the countryside, hunting for targets. Already Russian strikes have surprised moderate rebel factions with their precise intelligence on weapons and supply depots, and communication centers.
US officials believe that factions trained and equipped by the CIA–including those with advanced TOW anti-tank weapons–have been a top targeting priority of the Russians, according to The Wall Street Journal.
The lack of an American military reaction to stop Russian strikes has convinced many Syrians that the US secretly gave a green light to Moscow, and that Washington now believes that Assad must be part of a political solution.
“The Russians are intervening with all their power and weapons, and that might change the battle very much,” says Younes Shasho, a member of Aleppo’s Council of Salaheddin Revolutionaries. “This is preparing for a very big battle in northern Syria.”
The Russian intervention may revitalize the beleaguered government forces and their allies, and at least stop rebel advances, if not begin to reverse them.
“Long term, they might win, it’s possible. Especially because the FSA has not been progressing and weapons are running out,” says Mr. Shasho of Assad and his determined allies. The FSA and a number of other moderate factions supported by the US and its allies have been battling jihadists, who in turn battle among themselves.
Shasho notes a lack of anti-aircraft weapons on the rebel side that have long been requested of the US. Washington has never provided shoulder-held anti-aircraft weapons, known as manpads, afraid that they might fall into the wrong hands and be used in the Middle East against commercial aircraft.
GAZIANTEP, TURKEY–Russia stepped up its military strikes against anti-regime rebels in Syria Wednesday, launching 26 cruise missiles from ships in the Caspian Sea some 900 miles away as part of its bid to reshape the battlefield to favor President Bashar al-Assad.
The week-long series of Russian air and sea strikes has been criticized by the US and Western governments for targeting moderate rebels in western Syria–many of them clandestinely backed by the United States–while leaving Islamic State (IS) and other jihadist groups relatively untouched.
That pattern was made clear in Kafr Nabl, a town in northern Idlib province where a headquarters of a faction of the US-backed Free Syrian Army (FSA) was struck last week. On Wednesday, five bombs were dropped around an emergency hospital that treats wounded fighters but is very far from any IS position.
Russia’s direct military intervention comes more than four years into this civil war, which has claimed some 250,000 lives and displaced millions of Syrians. At least in part, it reinforces the efforts of regional power Iran, which for years has supported the Assad regime financially and militarily along with the Lebanese militia Hezbollah whose fighters have been instrumental in the battle against anti-regime rebels.
“Definitely this will change the direction of the battle, and the direction of the [anti-Assad] groups who can’t defend themselves from this,” says Mr. Payoush. “The Americans decide to strike the jihadists, so Russia strikes the moderates. The only remaining force will be Assad.”
Russia has also hit IS–stating that the cruise missiles were programmed for IS targets–and claims in recent days to have destroyed ammunition depots and four IS command centers. But Moscow says its battle against “terrorists” extends beyond the jihadists and includes all rebel groups, many supported with weapons and cash by the US, Turkey, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Jordan to topple Mr. Assad.
The bulk of Russian strikes so far have clustered in areas where Assad recently has lost ground, threatening a critical spine of territory in western Syria stretching from the capital, Damascus, to the coastal city of Latakia–the base of Russian air operations in Syria.
The Russian air and missile bombardments come amid reports of Syrian government forces launching a fresh ground offensive, in concert with hundreds of Iranian military advisers and thousands of Shiite Hezbollah fighters.
Russian cargo aircraft fly non-stop to Syria, and Russian drones are now constantly above Aleppo and rebel bastions in the countryside, hunting for targets. Already Russian strikes have surprised moderate rebel factions with their precise intelligence on weapons and supply depots, and communication centers.
US officials believe that factions trained and equipped by the CIA–including those with advanced TOW anti-tank weapons–have been a top targeting priority of the Russians, according to The Wall Street Journal.
The lack of an American military reaction to stop Russian strikes has convinced many Syrians that the US secretly gave a green light to Moscow, and that Washington now believes that Assad must be part of a political solution.
“The Russians are intervening with all their power and weapons, and that might change the battle very much,” says Younes Shasho, a member of Aleppo’s Council of Salaheddin Revolutionaries. “This is preparing for a very big battle in northern Syria.”
The Russian intervention may revitalize the beleaguered government forces and their allies, and at least stop rebel advances, if not begin to reverse them.
“Long term, they might win, it’s possible. Especially because the FSA has not been progressing and weapons are running out,” says Mr. Shasho of Assad and his determined allies. The FSA and a number of other moderate factions supported by the US and its allies have been battling jihadists, who in turn battle among themselves.
Shasho notes a lack of anti-aircraft weapons on the rebel side that have long been requested of the US. Washington has never provided shoulder-held anti-aircraft weapons, known as manpads, afraid that they might fall into the wrong hands and be used in the Middle East against commercial aircraft.
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